LaSalle Unit 1 Automatically Shuts Down

LaSalle Generating Station Unit 1 automatically shut down at 4:35 p.m. Thursday, May 21. The plant responded as expected, safely and without incident.

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5/21/2009 8:00 PM

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MARSEILLES, Ill. (May 22, 2009) - LaSalle Generating Station Unit 1 automatically shut down at 4:35 p.m. Thursday, May 21. The plant responded as expected, safely and without incident.The cause of the shut down appears to be a failure of a lightning protection device in the plant's main transformer. That equipment failure caused a small fire in a portion of the transformer that was extinguished quickly by an automatic fire suppression system. Plant teams are investigating the cause of the transformer equipment failure. As a precaution, fire department personnel from Marseilles responded to the plant site but the fire was extinguished by the time they arrived.The LaSalle Unit 1 shutdown will not have an impact on electrical service to Exelon customers.

LaSalle County Generating Station is located approximately 75 miles southwest of Chicago. With both units at full power, the site produces more than 2,200 megawatts net, which is enough electricity for 2.3 million homes.